England Sri Lanka, 1st ODI

Sweaty work. That’s what England are preparing themselves for over the next two months. While the Tests might last five days – in principle, at least – it is the one-dayers that players say really saps your reserves. Given the break-neck speed at which Eoin Morgan’s men play the game, fitness will truly be tested. Were it not for the conditions, this duel of eighth v first in the world would be no tough call.

Preparing for a World Cup at home with a series in Sri Lanka seems a bit hare-brained. But cricket tends to throw up these weird little situations. Case in point: the qualifiers for the upcoming Women’s World Twenty20 in the Caribbean were held in the Netherlands. Even boards tie themselves up in these knots. Remember when England prepared for the 2014 World T20 in Bangladesh with an ODI tour of West Indies?

Anyway, a slick, more attuned white-ball focus means no stone are left unturned. This tour, along with that of the Caribbean in the new year, is less about tactics and more about individuals’ will and decision-making.

Marginal calls have already been made by the selection committee, such as the decision to leave Sam Billings and James Vince at home: two players who in this World Cup cycle have had opportunities as top and middle-order alternates. Their times are not over, but they’re certainly not right now.Live Scorecard: